Holocaust Survivor to Speak at Salem State Endowed Fund Launch

From Salem State: On April 19, Rubin Sztajer, 92, will address the campus community as a $25,000 fund in his name for Salem State’s Brotherhood organization is announced.

WHAT: The endowed $25,000 Rubin Sztajer Holocaust Survivor Fund will be formally announced during an event with Mr. Sztajer, at which he will discuss his experience as a young boy in Nazi Germany and spread his message of hope and survival. The fund will benefit The Brotherhood at Salem State, a mentoring group for men of color. The initial $25,000 gift was provided by Mr. Sztajer’s daughter, Lenore Pearlstein and family. Ms. Pearlstein is the owner of INSIGHT into Diversity Magazine, the oldest publication focusing on diversity and inclusion in higher education. Ms. Pearlstein donated funds earlier this year to allow The Brotherhood to travel to Tampa, FL for the Black, Brown and College Bound Summit, and after hearing about the students’ experiences in Tampa, was inspired to further support their organization. This event is free and open to the public and media.

WHEN: Wednesday, April 19, 2017 3-4:30 pm

WHERE: Salem State University

352 Lafayette Street | Salem, MA 01970

Veterans Hall, Ellison Campus Center

WHO: Rubin Sztajer grew up in Klobuck, Poland with his parents, three sisters, and two brothers. In 1940, a year after the invasion of Poland, Rubin and his family were forced to live in a Jewish ghetto. Two years later, on April 12, 1942, Rubin was taken by German soldiers to Markstadt, a forced labor camp. In June of 1943, he was moved to the concentration camp Bergen-Belsen until he was finally liberated by the British.

After he was liberated, and with only a fifth grade education and the clothes on his back, he came to the United States as an immigrant, and made a wonderful life for himself. He has been married for 62 years, has three college-educated first generation children, seven college-educated grandchildren, and two great grandchildren. Sztajer has spent the past 45 years speaking to audiences of mostly young people, not only talking about what he experienced as a young boy in Nazi Germany, but more importantly, inspiring all those listening with his message of hope and survival.

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